How to Remove Hot Melt Glue from Fabric

Mauricio asked: How do I clean hot melt glue from fabric? I let some hot melt glue spill on my jeans. Now, I want to know if there is a way to clean it without messing it up more?

Hot melt glue is strong stuff. Since it is applied in a liquid, melted state, it is able to wrap around the fibers before hardening to a solid bond. There are a few methods that can be implemented to remove the glue from fabrics. It may take several attempts to find the right solution for the particular fabric.

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I have tried rubbing alcohol, then acetone, with little success. The hot melt is on our sofa… my wife was hot melting on our sofa!!! Should I get a new sofa or a new wife? I will try a hot iron, but will wait for the acetone to evaporate first since it has such a low flash point; I could burn the house down!

What is the best way to remove glue used for fastening letters & numbers to a sports jersey? The majority of the glue is gone, but there still remains glue residue. I have also tried Goo Gone; no significant change.

David,
It depends on what material the shoes are made of. If they are fabric, such as canvas, then yes, these methods should work.
If the shoes are tennis shoes, then any of these methods either could work or could cause damage, such as by the paint on the rubber being torn off with the freezing method or part of the shoe melting with the ironing method. The ironing method is probably the least likely to cause damage as long as you’re careful to not let the iron touch anywhere on the shoe without the paper in between, and as long as the paper is sturdy, such as a brown paper bag rather than a paper towel. If you want to try the acetone method, test it first on a small hidden area like under the shoe tongue to be sure it does not damage the shoe.
If the shoes are leather, then the freezing method or ironing method should work, but you may need to use a leather degreaser afterward to remove the stain from any wax that has soaked into the leather. Do not use the acetone method on leather.

Abbey,
You can try using Goo Gone; another commenter wrote in to say they had success with that. For the ironing method, you don’t actually have to iron the fabric as though it is flat fabric; just passing the iron over the surface of the paper on the bag will be enough for the heat to dissolve the glue. The iron trick is used for upholstery and pillows as well.

Will it work on cloth toys such as a Pokémon plush? I’m asking because my Leafeon plush has some dried hot glue on its lower back, near the tail, where I think the tail was originally hot glued to the body in a certain place, but when it arrived in the mail a couple days ago, it was completely invisible to my eyes, but I just recently noticed it, and my mom has tried the alcohol method with a Q-tip but nothing happened. Please help me, I’m getting annoyed with having to pick and scratch at the glue to try and get it off.

Shining,
Yes, the iron method can work on plus toys as well. Just be careful not to let the hot iron touch anything other than the paper bag though as it could melt the fur on the toy with direct contact (depending on what type of fur it has). You could also try shaving it off with a razor. Good luck!

Susan,
There’s never any guarantee, but using the Iron Method is probably the best and safest choice. That way you can avoid any chemical reactions from the acetone, and that should also be avoided if the frame is wood since the acetone would have to soak on the glue to soften it and liquid should never be allowed to soak on wood. The freezer method could work, but also could cause damage if you accidentally chip off some of the frame along with the glue, etc. Good luck!

Terry,
If you want to try Goo Gone, use it by itself, not with an iron. Goo Gone is flammable, and even the low temperature of an iron my be high enough for it to cause problems. Also, it isn’t needed for the iron method. The iron method uses heat to melt the glue so it can then be absorbed by the cloth.
If you don’t have cloth to use for this, you can use brown paper instead. Do not use white paper. If using a brown paper bag, make sure there isn’t any printed ink on it (turn it inside out if there is so the ink is on the inside of the bag) or the ink could stain the fabric.

Marion,
The best way to know for sure if a cleaner is safe for your specific material is to test it on a small, hidden area first. With velour, it’s possible that it could leave the fabric stiff once it has dried, so be sure to allow it to dry completely before trying it on the glue.
Source: HowToCleanStuff.net – How to Clean Velour Upholstery